Steel: AUS6 Stainless Steel
Rc 56-58
Blade Length 7"
Thickness: .250"
Overall Length: 12.25"
Weight: 12.8 oz.
Sheath: Kydex Groove
SOG SEAL 2000 Underwater knife D-test. This exact model has been discontinued by SOG.
I decided to test this one underwater because of it's name. I am a diver and I wanted to see how the knife would perform underwater at a variety of hard tasks. When one gets into a jam underwater he must use what he has on him to break free and return to the surface before your air supply runs out. This is one of the most extreme knife survival situations anyone can face. One can not simply return to the surface and retrieve the tools needed to free himself. It's a do or die situation. One does not have much time to perform a task to break free from a possibly death sentence. Depending on ones depth one may only have a few minutes to free himself before his air supply is exhausted.
Equipment failure in these conditions is not an option.
So how did the SOG seal 2000 perform in this hostile environment ? Lets find out.
For this test we constructed a test water tank containing all the necessary hardware need to perform and video tape this test. I was suited up in full Scuba gear with my normal weight in fresh water wearing a 3mm wet suit. A vice is placed at the bottom in order to hold the testing material in a fixed and locked position.
Test summary:
Cutting: The one thing different being underwater then one on surface you are weightless. Every task is much harder to perform in a weightless environment. You have to fight for your position needed to complete a task.
I begin to cut to some 10,000 pound webbing. The plain edge did fair. However the serrations performed better at this task. I then cut some 1/2" nylon braided rope. The pain edge performed better at this then the serrations. The serrations grabbed the tiny nylon fibers during the rope cutting instead of smoothly gliding over and cutting the material.
Chopping: Why would you have to chop underwater ? Well it's not for fire wood. LOL ! I have done my fair share of wreck diving. I have been in very large and small cabin boats and ships as well as a few airplanes. These cabin boats are mostly made of wood and fiberglass. They are not exactly in showroom condition being sunk at the bottom of a lake for many years. One may have to chop some material out to remove it out of their path.
I chopped a 2x6 underwater with the Seal 2000 and I was only able to remove a small amount of material do to the difficultly of performing this task underwater but this may be enough depending on the situation.
Tip Work: As I do in the other tests. I dug a hole through a 2x6 both in a vertical position and a horizontal position. The tip held up well for this task. This could come in handy if your dive partner was trapped and you needed to slip him a dive hose connected to your tanks. He could attach his regulator provided he had a quick detach air hose that was compatible with his life support breathing gear. You could remove your BC and return to the surface leaving him with more air and get quick help. This is hypothetical but it could be an option if needed. Time is critical and having any option in this situation is much better then having none. You have to think fast and work fast.
Prying: I nailed 2 2x4's together and was able to jam the tip of the Seal 2000 under them and pry them apart. This was to easy. I will return to this later.
Sawing Nails: After I pried the boards apart. I sawed the 3 nails in half using the serrations. They worked well for this.
Sheet Metal: As I mentioned before I have been wreck diving in a few airplanes. They were total wrecks on the inside with sheet metal protruding all over the place. If trapped inside you may be able to cut your way out of the outer skin and slip through with your dive gear or after removing your dive gear.
I set up a galvanized steel oil drip pan like in the Gerber LMF II test. I stabbed the tip in and using the serrations an was able to cut a square hole big enough to slip through, if I removed my gear and held my breath. The serrations performed well at this task.
Cutting: I cut some more webbing using the serrations. They were still capable of performing this task after cutting the sheet metal.
Cutting Cable/Concrete: I have seen cinder blocks in the lakes with steel cables attached to them. I don't now their exact purpose but they obviously were used to anchor something down. They were discarded at the bottom. I decided to incorporate this into the test. If I was ever tangled up in one I would like to know how to free myself. I tried to saw through the cable first using the Seal 2000 serrations but this did not work. I tried to chop the brick to see if I could split it and remove the cable this did not work. So I choped at the cable using the brick as a base and was able to sever the cable and remove it from the block. The edge of the Seal 2000 held up very well during this.
Hammer Impacts: Since it is very hard to chop underwater there is another option for removing material faster and more effective if you have a knife that can handle it. As I do in the other tests I used the 3 lb steel mallet to hammer on the spine increasing the force and removing more material then I could chopping alone underwater. The Seal 2000 held up fine to the hammer impacts. I only dented the spine some.
Now you may not have a hammer with you diving unless you are wreck diving. However in some of these boats there is all kinds of debris. I have seen metal pipes metal hand rails and other metal boat parts lying about the floor of these wrecks. Whatever you can find to increase the force of the knife may be of great benefit if needed and if your knife can withstand it. The Seal 2000 handled it well.
Prying: The first pry test was to easy. I repeated it again. This time I nailed the 2x4's together using a large framing nail gun using longer ring shank nails and more of them. It was much harder this time around. I jammed the tip between the to boards by pounding on the butt with my hand and pried at the boards attempting to separate them. It took a lot muscle and force but the SOG Seal 2000 was up to the task. I was finally able to separate the boards. The knife is strong and no failure or tip breakage occurred. I sawed 2 more nails same as before using the serrations.
Concrete Breaking: I chopped at the concrete and then hammered the edge into several cinder clocks breaking them apart. I hammered the tip into a cinder block breaking the stone. No damage occurred to the knife edge or tip or handle. Being able to remove and break debris both natural or man made underwater with your dive knife can be of great benefit if you get trapped. If your dive knife is up to the task. The Seal 2000 performed excellent at this.
Flex: Test: I performed this underwater as well. I placed the knife in the vice about 1.5 inches from the tip. I was able to get flex the knife about 35 to 40 degrees before the tip broke.
Metal on Metal: I attempted to hammer the SOG Seal 2000 through a piece of 1.5 inch mild steel flat stock with the goal of shearing it in half using the 3 lb steel mallet. The edge broke out a few times during this. The blade did not break. The knife took a good beating as I worked on the metal for a while. I finally cut it enough to break the metal with my hands.
The knife was is bad shape after this but was still mostly together.
Side Tang Impacts: I place the knife in the vice and hit the handle many times before it finally broke clean from the blade. The SOG Seal took some good impacts but It gave in. Only a few knives I have tested were able to fully endure this test. It's a hard one.
Overall: The SOG Seal 2000 performed very well as a hard use dive knife. It is both tough and strong. The handle is nice and fairly big for a dive knife. Big handles are a plus on a dive knife. The serrations work very well on a variety of materials that a plain edge alone would be no use on. The tip is strong and durable.
As I said before. When diving, especially wreck diving equipment failure is not an option. The SOG Seal 2000 performed some very hard difficult underwater tasks, most with ease. The edge did chip out trying to hammer through steel. Several other test knives were able to do this without edge tear out. In a failure is not an option environment. I would want a knife that could accomplish this task without damage to the edge. The demands of this test are high and it failed in this area. However the knife did excel in many areas and as a diver I would carry the SOG Seal 2000 with confidence that it was up to many hard tasks needed to save my life or my dive partners life. In fact it is much better then my current dive knife. Now that I have seen what the SOG Seal can do underwater I will be making a switch to a better, tougher,stronger knife.
The videos are in 11 parts. Posted at www.knifetests.com
Enjoy the videos. They were made for you. :thumbup:
Rc 56-58
Blade Length 7"
Thickness: .250"
Overall Length: 12.25"
Weight: 12.8 oz.
Sheath: Kydex Groove
SOG SEAL 2000 Underwater knife D-test. This exact model has been discontinued by SOG.
I decided to test this one underwater because of it's name. I am a diver and I wanted to see how the knife would perform underwater at a variety of hard tasks. When one gets into a jam underwater he must use what he has on him to break free and return to the surface before your air supply runs out. This is one of the most extreme knife survival situations anyone can face. One can not simply return to the surface and retrieve the tools needed to free himself. It's a do or die situation. One does not have much time to perform a task to break free from a possibly death sentence. Depending on ones depth one may only have a few minutes to free himself before his air supply is exhausted.
Equipment failure in these conditions is not an option.
So how did the SOG seal 2000 perform in this hostile environment ? Lets find out.
For this test we constructed a test water tank containing all the necessary hardware need to perform and video tape this test. I was suited up in full Scuba gear with my normal weight in fresh water wearing a 3mm wet suit. A vice is placed at the bottom in order to hold the testing material in a fixed and locked position.
Test summary:
Cutting: The one thing different being underwater then one on surface you are weightless. Every task is much harder to perform in a weightless environment. You have to fight for your position needed to complete a task.
I begin to cut to some 10,000 pound webbing. The plain edge did fair. However the serrations performed better at this task. I then cut some 1/2" nylon braided rope. The pain edge performed better at this then the serrations. The serrations grabbed the tiny nylon fibers during the rope cutting instead of smoothly gliding over and cutting the material.
Chopping: Why would you have to chop underwater ? Well it's not for fire wood. LOL ! I have done my fair share of wreck diving. I have been in very large and small cabin boats and ships as well as a few airplanes. These cabin boats are mostly made of wood and fiberglass. They are not exactly in showroom condition being sunk at the bottom of a lake for many years. One may have to chop some material out to remove it out of their path.
I chopped a 2x6 underwater with the Seal 2000 and I was only able to remove a small amount of material do to the difficultly of performing this task underwater but this may be enough depending on the situation.
Tip Work: As I do in the other tests. I dug a hole through a 2x6 both in a vertical position and a horizontal position. The tip held up well for this task. This could come in handy if your dive partner was trapped and you needed to slip him a dive hose connected to your tanks. He could attach his regulator provided he had a quick detach air hose that was compatible with his life support breathing gear. You could remove your BC and return to the surface leaving him with more air and get quick help. This is hypothetical but it could be an option if needed. Time is critical and having any option in this situation is much better then having none. You have to think fast and work fast.
Prying: I nailed 2 2x4's together and was able to jam the tip of the Seal 2000 under them and pry them apart. This was to easy. I will return to this later.
Sawing Nails: After I pried the boards apart. I sawed the 3 nails in half using the serrations. They worked well for this.
Sheet Metal: As I mentioned before I have been wreck diving in a few airplanes. They were total wrecks on the inside with sheet metal protruding all over the place. If trapped inside you may be able to cut your way out of the outer skin and slip through with your dive gear or after removing your dive gear.
I set up a galvanized steel oil drip pan like in the Gerber LMF II test. I stabbed the tip in and using the serrations an was able to cut a square hole big enough to slip through, if I removed my gear and held my breath. The serrations performed well at this task.
Cutting: I cut some more webbing using the serrations. They were still capable of performing this task after cutting the sheet metal.
Cutting Cable/Concrete: I have seen cinder blocks in the lakes with steel cables attached to them. I don't now their exact purpose but they obviously were used to anchor something down. They were discarded at the bottom. I decided to incorporate this into the test. If I was ever tangled up in one I would like to know how to free myself. I tried to saw through the cable first using the Seal 2000 serrations but this did not work. I tried to chop the brick to see if I could split it and remove the cable this did not work. So I choped at the cable using the brick as a base and was able to sever the cable and remove it from the block. The edge of the Seal 2000 held up very well during this.
Hammer Impacts: Since it is very hard to chop underwater there is another option for removing material faster and more effective if you have a knife that can handle it. As I do in the other tests I used the 3 lb steel mallet to hammer on the spine increasing the force and removing more material then I could chopping alone underwater. The Seal 2000 held up fine to the hammer impacts. I only dented the spine some.
Now you may not have a hammer with you diving unless you are wreck diving. However in some of these boats there is all kinds of debris. I have seen metal pipes metal hand rails and other metal boat parts lying about the floor of these wrecks. Whatever you can find to increase the force of the knife may be of great benefit if needed and if your knife can withstand it. The Seal 2000 handled it well.
Prying: The first pry test was to easy. I repeated it again. This time I nailed the 2x4's together using a large framing nail gun using longer ring shank nails and more of them. It was much harder this time around. I jammed the tip between the to boards by pounding on the butt with my hand and pried at the boards attempting to separate them. It took a lot muscle and force but the SOG Seal 2000 was up to the task. I was finally able to separate the boards. The knife is strong and no failure or tip breakage occurred. I sawed 2 more nails same as before using the serrations.
Concrete Breaking: I chopped at the concrete and then hammered the edge into several cinder clocks breaking them apart. I hammered the tip into a cinder block breaking the stone. No damage occurred to the knife edge or tip or handle. Being able to remove and break debris both natural or man made underwater with your dive knife can be of great benefit if you get trapped. If your dive knife is up to the task. The Seal 2000 performed excellent at this.
Flex: Test: I performed this underwater as well. I placed the knife in the vice about 1.5 inches from the tip. I was able to get flex the knife about 35 to 40 degrees before the tip broke.
Metal on Metal: I attempted to hammer the SOG Seal 2000 through a piece of 1.5 inch mild steel flat stock with the goal of shearing it in half using the 3 lb steel mallet. The edge broke out a few times during this. The blade did not break. The knife took a good beating as I worked on the metal for a while. I finally cut it enough to break the metal with my hands.
The knife was is bad shape after this but was still mostly together.
Side Tang Impacts: I place the knife in the vice and hit the handle many times before it finally broke clean from the blade. The SOG Seal took some good impacts but It gave in. Only a few knives I have tested were able to fully endure this test. It's a hard one.
Overall: The SOG Seal 2000 performed very well as a hard use dive knife. It is both tough and strong. The handle is nice and fairly big for a dive knife. Big handles are a plus on a dive knife. The serrations work very well on a variety of materials that a plain edge alone would be no use on. The tip is strong and durable.
As I said before. When diving, especially wreck diving equipment failure is not an option. The SOG Seal 2000 performed some very hard difficult underwater tasks, most with ease. The edge did chip out trying to hammer through steel. Several other test knives were able to do this without edge tear out. In a failure is not an option environment. I would want a knife that could accomplish this task without damage to the edge. The demands of this test are high and it failed in this area. However the knife did excel in many areas and as a diver I would carry the SOG Seal 2000 with confidence that it was up to many hard tasks needed to save my life or my dive partners life. In fact it is much better then my current dive knife. Now that I have seen what the SOG Seal can do underwater I will be making a switch to a better, tougher,stronger knife.
The videos are in 11 parts. Posted at www.knifetests.com
Enjoy the videos. They were made for you. :thumbup:
